Method for



March 1, 1966 H. HENTZ ETAL 3,237,654

METHOD FOR msmwme YARN mwo A SHUTTLE AND DEVICE THEREFOR Filed July 15, 1963 United States Patent 3,237,654 METHOD FOR INSERTING YARN INTO A SHUTTLE AND DEVICE THEREFOR Hans Heutz, Zurich, and Heinrich Feud, Regensdorf,

Zurich, Switzerland, assignors to Verwaltungsgesellschaft der Werkzeugmaschinenfabrik Oerlikon, Zurich, Switzerland Filed July 15, 1963, Ser. No. 294,981 Claims priority, application Switzerland, July 30, 1962, 9,117/ 62 14 Claims. (Cl. 139-424) The present invention relates to a method for inserting yarn into the cavity of a hollow body, and more particularly of a textile machine shuttle and to devices for carrying out this method.

The invention is suitable, in particular, in connection with the devices for piling up a weft thread for looms ofthe kind shown and described in US. patent application, Serial No. 206,609, filed July 2, 1962 in the names of Heinrich Fend and Hanz Hentz, but is not limited to these devices, since it may be found to be useful in connection with other yarn handling equipment.

The invention comprises a method in which a stream of air is used to blow the yarn into the said cavity through an opening of the hollow body, and a device comprising a nozzle adapted to deliver a stream of air carrying the yarn to be thus inserted into the said cavity.

With known methods and in known devices of this kind, the stream of air which carries the yarn issues from the nozzle along a straight line which coincides with the axis of the nozzle, so that the yarn continually enters the cavity of the hollow body substantially in that axis. It is experienced that the yarn then becomes deposited in this cavity in coils forming an approximately cylindrical package of limited diameter, and it is not possible in this manner, therefore, to fill completely with yarn a cavity of larger diameter, let alone one of noncylindrical shape.

One object of the present invention is to provide a method and means for filling a cavity of any shape with as much yarn as possible.

Another object of the invention is to provide the possibility of inserting as great a length of yarn as possible into a cavity of flat, wide shape, especially in the shuttles of a weaving machine, in order to use as low shuttles as possible and accordingly, as low a shed and as short warp thread displacements as possible, on each change of shed.

This is achieved, according to the method of the invention, by deflecting the stream of air laterally to and fro, and means associated with the nozzle for doing so automatically.

The accompanying drawing illustrates the invention and depicts, by way of example only, various embodiments of the device according to the invention.

In the drawing:

FIGURE 1 represents, in longitudinal section, a first device according to the invention, comprising a nozzle with eccentrically supported deflector bodies;

FIGURE 2 represents the nozzle of the device according to FIGURE 1, as seen from its mouth;

FIGURE 3 represents in longitudinal section another device according to the invention, comprising deflector bodies in the shape of vane wheels;

FIGURE 4 shows, also in longitudinal section, a third embodiment of the invention, with two lateral ducts controlled by an abutting tongue;

FIGURE 5 depicts in a similar manner another embodiment having two lateral ducts controlled by a swinging tongue, and

FIGURE 6 represents a fifth embodiment of the invention, with uncontrolled lateral ducts.

In the device according to FIGURE 1, a nozzle body 3 is connected to a tube 1 through which successive lengths of weft yarn 11 to be fed into the cavities of successive weaving machine shuttles are transported into the device by means of compressed air also supplied through that tube 1 in the direction of the arrow 2. In the nozzle body 3, a nozzle duct 4 is formed the crosssection of which gradually changes from a circular crosssection at the connection of the tube 1 to the flat, wide cross-section shown in FIGURE 2, .at the mouth of the nozzle. Moreover, the nozzle body 3 contains two cylindrical chambers 8, the axes of which are perpendicular to that of the nozzle duct 4 and the height of which is somewhat greater than that of the said duct, these chambers being so positioned that the middle plane of the nozzle duct 4 is tangent to their peripheral Walls, so that the nozzle duct 4 intersects each of these chambers unilaterally. In each of the chambers 8, a deflector body 9 in the shape of a short section of a tube is freely movable about a pin 10 mounted in the axis of the chamber.

The compressed air which is introduced into the nozzle duct 4 and which transports the yarn 11 passes between the two deflector bodies 9 and flows towards the mouth of the nozzle. In doing so, it causes the deflector bodies 9 to revolve in their chambers 8 about the pins 10. Thereby, each deflector body temporarily occupies part of the crosssection of the nozzle duct and therefore displaces into the opposite chamber 8 the stream of air and the yarn 11 transported by it. It will be found that the two deflector bodies alternately project into the nozzle duct, so that the stream of air is alternately deflected to the right and to the left. The yarn 11 transported by the air therefore leaves the nozzle through the mouth 5 in a zigzag configuration 12 which advances together with the air; in doing so, it passes at continually varying places of the nozzle mouth.

The purpose of this device is to feed the yarn into the cavity of a weaving machine shuttle. This shuttle may be, for example, a modification of the cylindrical shuttle shown in FIGURE 4 of the above mentioned US. patent application Serial No. 206,609 to show the cooperation of the present device with one such shuttle, an example of the latter is shown in the accompanying FIGURE 1 although the shuttle is no part of the device according to the present invention.

This shuttle, generally designated by 30, has a flat, crescent-like shape and has a flat cavity 31 with an inlet opening 32 of likewise flat cross-section leading thereinto from the outside. The opposite end of the cavity 31 is connected by an outlet opening 33 to a cross-bore 34 extending from one face of the shuttle to the other. Means (not shown) are provided for temporarily maintaining the shuttle with its inlet opening 32 in front of the mouth 5 of the nozzle duct 4 of the present device.

While the shuttle 30 is so positioned, the air stream delivered by the nozzle and carrying with it the succes sive zigzag-configurated lengths 12 of the yarn 11 enters the cavity 31 through the inlet opening 32 and leaves it partly through a series of holes 35 and partly through the thread outlet opening 33 and the transverse bore 34. In doing so and according to the teaching of the aforesaid patent application Serial No. 206,609, it causes the front end of the length of yarn 11 to escape through the thread outlet opening 33 into the transverse bore 34, which acts as a slowing-down means for the front end of the yarn, so that the bulk of the length of yarn becomes piled up in the cavity 31. This piling-up is aided by the zig-zag configuration 12 of the yarn, which ensures a good filling of the cavity 31. Therefore, a comparatively small cavity suflices for accommodating a given length of the yarn,

and the shuttle can be given comparatively small dimensions.

Referring now to FIGURE 3, the device represented therein only differs from that represented in FIGURES l and 2 in that the two deflector bodies which revolve in the chambers 8 are formed each by a vane wheel 13 which is rotatably supported on the respective pin 10. Here again, the two deflector bodies do not rotate symmetrically with reference to the plane of symmetry of the nozzle duct but in such manner that one vane of one of the wheels 13 alternates with one vane of the other wheel in advancing into the nozzle duct 4 until near the said plane of symmetry. Thereby, the stream of air carrying the yarn 11 again is deflected alternately to one side and the other.

In the example according to FIGURE 4, two separate conduits 21 are connected by oblique lateral ducts or ports to the nozzle duct 4 within the nozzle body 3. The air stream carrying the yarn 11 again is supplied to the nozzle duct 4 through a tube 1. The two conduits 21 start from a distributor head 14 having a wedge-shaped cavity 16. An auxiliary conduit 15 supplying compressed air leads into the wedge-shaped chamber 16 at the wide or rear end thereof, while the ducts or ports 2% leading to the conduits 21 start from the lateral walls of the chamber. A resilient tongue 17 fixed at its rear end 18 in the distributor head 14, provided with resilient obturating discs 19, and capable of swinging t and fro like the tongue of an organ pipe, clarinet or hautboy, alternately closes the entrances of one and the other ducts or ports 20. The tongue 18 is thrown by the pressure set up in the chamber 16 by the air arriving through the auxiliary conduit against the entrance of one or the other duct or port, whichever happens to be nearer and in front of which the tongue accordingly produces the greater drop of pressure. However, after the tongue 18 has entirely obturated that entrance and interrupted the flow of air through it, the pressure in the respective duct or port 20 rises again and in conjunction with the stress of the tongue which has reached its maximum deflection and aided by its recoil again opens that duct entrance and swings over to the entrance of the opposite duct or port 20, which it temporarily closes, and so on.

Thereby, the air arriving through the auxiliary conduit 15 is alternately directed into one and the other of the ducts 20 and conduits 21. Phase-offset pulsating air streams therefore enter the nozzle duct 4 at an angle with the nozzle axis 4a, which streams merge with that coming from the tube 1 and carrying the yarn, and which deflect it laterally to and fro. Therefore, the yarn 11 in the nozzle duct 4 is given a zigzag or serpentine configuration 12 with which it leaves the mouth 5 of the nozzle at varying places. It is deposited in the shuttle (not shown in FIGURE 3) in the same manner as explained with reference to FIGURE 1.

The embodiment shown in FIGURE 5 differs from that of FIGURE 4 in that instead of the described so-called abutting tongue 18, which closes the entrances of the lateral ducts or ports, the distributor head 14 contains a so-called through-swinging tongue 22. This alternately separates from the wedge-shaped chamber 16 a recess 23 communicating with one of the ducts 2t and a recess 24 communicating with the other of these ducts, while each time the opposite recess 24 or 23, respectively is left in communication with the chamber 16 over its full length. The tongue 22 does not abut any wall but swings freely in front of the issue of the conduit 15 under the combined influence of its elasticity and of the air forces. Thereby, it again controls the flow of air coming from the conduit 15 and alternately directs it into one and the other conduit 21 for deflecting the main flow of air through the nozzle duct 4.

However, no abutting or freely swinging tongue is required if the air stream which carries the yarn 11 through the nozzle is allowed to draw in ambient air through lateral ports 25 entering the nozzle duct 4 forming an 4 angle with its axis 4a, in the manner of an injector pump. It has been found indeed that in this case as well, the major part of the air is drawn in alternately through one and the other lateral port 25. The air thus drawn in then forms a trail of vortices (similar to the so-called Karman wake occurring behind a cylinder in an air stream), comprising two rows of vortices flowing away in quincunx pattern with the air stream and rotating in opposite senses. These vortices therefore produce a pulsating transverse flow of air which overlies the uniform flow coming from the tube 1 and carrying the yarn, so that a stream of air which is laterally deflected to and fro issues from the mouth 5 of the nozzle duct 4. This air stream transports the yarn 11 through the nozzle mouth 5 in the shape of a sinuous line travelling away with it.

We claim:

1. In a method for inserting yarn into the cavity of a shuttle in a textile machine the steps comprising blowing a stream of air into said cavity, introducing yarn into said stream of air at a point before said stream of air reaches said cavity and deflecting said stream of air laterally to and fro.

2. The method of inserting yarn into a textile machine shuttle having a cavity adapted to receive said yarn and an entrance opening from the outside to said cavity, comprising positioning said shuttle with respect to a duct having an inlet and an outlet, to place said entrance opening of the shuttle in alignment with said outlet of the duct, blowing a stream of air through said duct from the inlet through the outlet thereof and through the entrance opening of the shuttle into the cavity of the latter, and at the same time progressively feeding said yarn into said duct through said inlet, and alternately introducing deflector bodies laterally into said duct to displace said stream of air transversely to and fro in said duct and as it issues therefrom through said outlet.

3. The method of inserting yarn into a textile machine shuttle having a cavity to receive said yarn and an en trance opening from the outside to said cavity, comprising positioning said shuttle with respect to a duct having an inlet and an outlet to place said entrance opening of the shuttle in alignment with said outlet of said duct, blowing a stream of air through said duct from the inlet through the outlet thereof and through said entrance opening into said cavity and at the same time progressively feeding said yarn into said duct through said inlet and blowing at least one pulsating stream of air into said duct in a direction differing from the direction of the axis of said duct, whereby said two streams of air become combined into a single one Whose direction of flow as it issues through said outlet varies cyclically.

4. The method as claimed in claim 3 in which at least two pulsating streams of air are blown into said duct in directions differing from each other and from that of the axis of said duct, the cycles of pulsation of said two pulsating streams of air being offset from each other.

5. The method as claimed in claim 3 wherein there is provided a continuous auxiliary stream of air entering intermittently at least one auxiliary duct issuing laterally into said first duct, to produce at least one pulsating stream of air.

6. The method as claimed in claim 3 wherein there is provided a continuous auxiliary stream of air entering alternately at least two auxiliary ducts issuing laterally on different sides into said first duct, to produce atleast two pulsating streams of air entering said first duct in different directions with mutually offset cycles of pulsation.

7. The method as claimed in claim 3 wherein said stream of air draws environment air into said duct through lateral auxiliary ports issuing thereinto, said lateral ports being positioned so as to cause the air thus drawn into said duct to set up a trail of vortices arranged in a quincunx pattern in said first stream of air and travelling therewith, whereby a pulsating stream of air is set up in each of said auxiliary ports.

8. Apparatus for inserting yarn into the cavity of a textile machine shuttle, comprising a nozzle for a stream of air carrying said yarn for delivering it into said cavity, and means associated with said nozzle for deflecting said stream of air to alternate sides of said nozzle.

9. Apparatus for inserting yarn into the cavities of a textile machine shuttle comprising a nozzle body defining a nozzle duct having an inlet for receiving a stream of air and yarn carried thereby and an outlet for delivering said yarn'carrying stream of air into said cavity, said nozzle body having a recess laterally adjoining said nozzle duct and communicating therewith, a deflector body supported in said recess for angular motion about a fixed axis with reference to said nozzle body, said deflector body having a radially projecting portion extending from said axis towards and into said duct for a variable distance depending on the angular position of said deflector body, whereby it is adapted to be moved angularly by said stream of air about said fixed axis to exert a variable deflecting action on said yarn-carrying stream of air.

10. Apparatus as claimed in claim 9 in which said deflector body is eccentrically supported for rotation about said axis.

11. Apparatus as claimed in claim 9 in which said deflector body is shaped as a vane wheel and axially supported for rotation about said axis.

12. Apparatus for inserting yarn into the cavity of a textile machine shuttle, comprising a nozzle body defining a nozzle duct having an inlet for receiving a stream of air and yarn carried thereby and an outlet for delivering said yarn-carrying stream of air into said cavity, said nozzle body further defining a pair of auxiliary ducts laterally issuing into said first duct at opposite sides thereof, means defining a distributing chamber, an auxiliary supply conduit issuing into said distributing chamber, a pair of branch conduits starting from said distributing chamber and connected to said auxiliary ducts, a

movable control member for restricting the flow of air from said distributing chamber alternately to one or the other of said branch conduits, and to be reciprocated between one and the other of said branch conduits by the flow of air through said distributing chamber to set up a pulsating flow of air through each of said branch conduits.

13. Apparatus as claimed in claim 12 in which said movable control member is a flexible tongue.

14. Apparatus for inserting yarn into the cavity of a textile machine shuttle, comprising a nozzle body defining a nozzle duct having an inlet for receiving a stream of air and yarn carried thereby and an outlet for delivering said yarn-carrying stream of air into said cavity, said nozzle body further defining a pair of auxiliary ducts laterally issuing into said first duct at opposite sides thereof at an acute angle with the axis thereof, whereby air is caused to be drawn in through said auxiliary ducts into said nozzle duct at alternating rates setting up a trail of vortices arranged in a quincunx pattern travelling downstream in said nozzle duct.

Refereaces Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,845,093 7/1958 Dietzsch et al. 13912 2,902,058 9/1959 Walton 139126 2,982,315 5/1961 Vi/illie et al. 139127 2,998,029 8/1961 Zahradnik 139127 3,056,430 10/1962 McGinley 13912 3,124,164 3/1964 Ewing 139-12 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,237,034 6/1960 France.

174,387 2/1961 Sweden.

DONALD W. PARKER, Primary Examiner. 

1. IN A METHOF FOR INSERTING YARN INTO THE CAVITY OF A SHUTTLE IN A TEXTILE MACHINE THE STEPS COMPRISING BLOWING A STREAM OF AIR INTO SAID CAVITY, INTRODUCING YARN INTO SAID STREAM OF AIR AT A POINT BEFORE SAID STREAM OF AIR REACHES SAID CAVITY AND DEFLECTING SAID STREAM OF AIR LATERALLY TO AND FRO. 